A metropolitan magistrate court here has ordered a retired banker to pay Rs30 lakh to his 62-year-old wife for causing mental stress during the last 30 years of their marriage.
The court also told the husband to return the 10 sovereigns of gold, car and cash she had brought during the wedding in 1977.
She said they had separated after five years of marriage because she found him to be unfaithful and subsequently, he married two other women.
Petitioner Senbagam (names changed), helped by city protection officer S. Pandiammal, knocked on the doors of the city court for justice under the Domestic Violence Act, 2005.
She said banker Ramu, now 65, had lived with her happily for the first five years and they had a son. But he began developing illicit affairs and when she questioned him, he ill-treated her.
“I avoided conflict in the interests of my son and sought judicial separation. I did not divorce him”, she told the court.
She said she even lost her documentation job after Ramu once went to her office and screamed in front of her colleagues.
On his part, Ramu told the court that Senbagam would always suspect his conduct and gave him no peace.
At last, they separated on mutual consent but she was now troubling him for money, he alleged.
Rejecting his plea, magistrate M Gopalan told Ramu to pay up Senbagam as demanded in her petition within two months.
Also, neither he nor his children from the other two wives should disturb Senbagam. Ramu should provide a safe place for Senbagam to reside and the protection officer should present a compliance report, the magistrate said.